A Last Goodbye, and a First Hello
by DaydreamerNightwriter
Summary: Picard says goodbye to the Enterprise one last time, and greets a new member to his extended family. Not submitted a story before, so thought I'd do a quick one before I attempt a longer one. Don't own the people or the places, just my imagination.
1. Chapter 1

Picard glanced around one last time. He hated to admit it, but it was time to move on. In the 18 months since the Reman incident he had accomplished much, but had found little joy in it. _USS Enterprise NCC-1701-F _had been re-commissioned after E had been destroyed by the _Scimitar._ He had captained her maiden voyage, watched B4 undergo major upgrades at his own request, whilst processing Data's memories until he eventually introduced himself as Data, Series 1.5. In addition the planned nuptials of Will Riker and Deanna Troi had finally taken place on Betazed, and Lwaxana had been a stickler for tradition, ensuring that the entire Wedding Party went as naked as the day they were born. Picard had his own theories as to why she did it, but he knew he barely escaped her amorous attentions with his skin intact. There had been many misty eyes when the newly commissioned _Enterprise F _finally left the couple on board Will's new command, plus one future addition as he and Beverley had been quietly informed. With the loss of half his officers to former postings, matrimony, new postings and the great beyond, Picard had had a hard time training their replacements, eventually accepting Admiral Janeway's fourth offer of an admiralcy and a place at Star Fleet Academy, and settling to training the new Captain as well as the rest of the Bridge crew. Beverley had decided at the same time to take a position at the Academy, telling him that she wasn't following him, just couldn't see the point in travelling without any of the familiar faces of the family that had built up over the years.

And now finally the day came that Picard handed over the reigns of the Flagship to her new Captain. She was a fine young woman, but Picard had a feeling that the Riker's, he corrected himself, the Troi's would be back one day. They were in Space Dock orbiting Earth, above San Francisco, and the Bridge was empty, abandoned, silent and deserted. Everyone had gone ashore for something or another. He looked around one last time, surrounded by the ghosts of his crew, both those gone and those who might darken these hallways again one day.

"Admiral Picard? We're ready to beam you to the surface." His combadge crackled, and he nodded, placing a hand on his chair one last time.

Time to make that step where no Picard has gone before.

"Make it so."

* * *

Will sat on the Captain's chair of the _Titan_. He was edgy and nervous and the Bridge crew were uncomfortable with him being there in that state, their eyes flitting to him every few seconds, but they knew full well that he had been banished to the Conn by the Doctor for being a nervous father to be.

"Riker to Sick Bay." The Ensign at the Helm stifled his moan again, knowing full well what the Doctor's response would be.

"As I told you before Captain, it will take as long as it takes. It is a natural process, and I, if not Deanna, have done this many times before." He frowned, knowing that he should know better than to go up against Beverley Crusher, but this was his wife. "Wipe that look off your face, you look like Jean-Luc when he's not getting his way. Deanna's fine, your baby is fine, this will take as long as the baby wants it to, there's no rushing it. So you keep us out of trouble and I'll look after things here." Finally Will nodded and closed the channel. He knew all would be well, he trusted Beverley implicitly; she had taken leave from the Academy and then all but commandeered a ship to get out here in time for the birth. Nothing could possibly go wrong.

* * *

Beverley smiled at Deanna as she started to come around.

"What happened?" she asked.

"You fell asleep after the birth. It was a long birth, and you were exhausted. Your husband is waiting to introduce you to your daughter. Will approached the bed, quietly humming to the newborn cradled in the crook of his arm.

"She's beautiful." He said, leaning over and kissing Deanna's forehead and passing her the baby. "You're beautiful. And I know what I want to name the baby." Deanna and Beverley listened carefully to him and then Beverley began to laugh.

"The only way to find out is to ask him." She said, the laugh still evident in her voice and her smile.

* * *

Picard was at his desk, reviewing the test results from the most recent intake wanting to become Tactical Officers when his combadge beeped.

"Admiral Picard, sir, you have a subspace communication, it is marked personal."

"Who's it from Ensign?"

"Uh, it's also marked surprise sir, I'm afraid I can't access its source. It's bounced through several ships, and I can't trace it." Picard's brow furrowed, a suspicion forming in his mind.

"I'll take it in my Ready… in my office." He knew the ensign was grinning from the tone of his voice as he complied. The screen on his desk flickered and then Beverley appeared.

"Good evening Jean-Luc." She smiled slightly, "I'm sorry to be interrupting you during your marking hours." Dear Gods but the woman knew his schedule far too well. "I have someone for you to meet." She stepped aside and his former counsellor and Number One came into view, leaning over a cradle. The lighting around them had been dimmed, and their outlines were softened by it as they stood there. He smiled at Deanna as she leaned into the cradle and lifted a bundle into her arms. She walked closer to the screen.

"Captain," she said, holding the baby gently tilted towards the screen. "I'd like you to meet my daughter." Riker joined her, quietly putting his arm around his wife's shoulders.

"With your permission, sir, we'd like to name her after you, and have you and Dr Crusher as her sponsors."

"I'd be honoured Number One." He replied thinking that he hadn't seen Riker looking this young and excited since they had first met.

"Well, Captain, I'd like you to meet baby Jeanne." Deanna said smiling down at the bundle in her arms. Riker grinned at him.

"I sense great joy, Number One." Picard said, stealing Deanna's phrase. "I also sense great officer potential."

"Don't you start!" Beverley laughed at him, coming back into focus. "At least wait until she's out of nappies before you recruit her."


	2. Geordi and B4

The oneshot has become a series of One Shots, in the aftermath of _Nemesis_. Please RnR and if you have a request for who I should try to do next please let me know! C x

La Forge glanced up at the Warp Core, all was well so far. After almost two decades as Chief of Engineering on the _Enterprise_ he had thought that a quiet stint on a Starbase would suit him well. He couldn't have been more wrong. After only two months of service on the Starbase he had requested a transfer off the base, stating cabin fever as the main grounds for the transfer. He missed having new stars to look at out of his porthole every day. He missed having new and challenging things to do everyday. He found staying in the same place, where the most exciting daily event was fixing a malfunctioning replicator was not the live for him. He couldn't understand how Worf, whose personality was much more violent with more wanderlust, could stand life aboard Deep Space Nine.

His next assignment had been much more interesting despite once again being in a fixed place. As he had had much experience 'servicing' Data he was requested at the Daystrom Institute to oversee some of B4's upgrades. It was somewhat difficult; he was still grieving for his friend, who now stood before him talking to him as if nothing had happened. Luckily, it was only a temporary assignment, they really only had one problem that they needed help with; something that he and Data had developed together. Having overseen this upgrade of Data… B4's neuronet, and then seeing how B4's system coped with the emotion chip, he had been reassigned, again.

This assignment was easy, it challenged him everyday, it gave him a new view everyday. In short it suited him perfectly. He was Chief Engineer onboard a Federation Science Ship, much smaller than the _Enterprise_ but he liked it. He glanced up at the Warp Core again, it was beginning to fluctuate slightly.

"Captain, we're pushing it as far as we can, much more and we could stall the engine." Probably impossible he thought, but he knew that the Captain would understand his reference to 20th Century automobiles.

"Ok La Forge, we'll leave it at that today. Report to my office at 0900 hours to discuss the results. Oh and the Communications Officer asked me to inform you that you have a subspace communiqué."

"Thank you Captain. La Forge out."

He wondered what the communiqué could be; he wasn't expecting anything. As it was the end of his shift he went to his quarters to read it.

He sat at the desk in his quarters and rubbed his temples where his visor used to sit. It had been a long shift, on top of a long shift, and he had only arrived in this posting two weeks previously. His eyelids began to droop, but he forced them open to read the communiqué, knowing that when he awoke he wouldn't have time to read it.

_Geordi, it gives me great pleasure to introduce a new member of our special crew, my daughter Jeanne, named of course for our former Captain, the dashing Admiral Picard. Will send a date for her naming ceremony, and the next poker meet, as soon as Deanna and Lwaxana decide upon them. Will._

He grinned from ear to ear and telling the computer to dim the lights headed for his bed.

* * *

B4 found things difficult to understand. The one who had called himself his brother had vanished. Ceased to exist. How could that be? The Bald One, who he discerned from the foreign memory engrams implanted by his_ brother_ was a Captain Jean Luc Picard, had tried to explain it. Data was, dead. That was incomprehensible to him; death didn't happen to androids like himself and Data. Through this incomprehension he found himself experiencing other things he didn't understand. There was… pain in the voices of those who spoke to him. At the same time the engrams had… _activated_, flooding him with knowledge.

B4 frequently found things difficult to understand but he realised he wanted to _be better_. To become _more human_. These were feelings that had only appeared after the engrams had become active. In his simple way he chose to let Picard know this by humming _Blue Skies. _His muddled brain recognised that he knew this because Data did, and that it was something that Picard might notice. He carried on fiddling with whatever it was he had picked up, humming when the words wouldn't come. he sensed that Picard had paused and heard him adding the words where he hummed. His positronic matrix wasn't developed enough to explain the changes that were occurring to Picard, but he thought that he had managed well enough then.

B4 was transferred to a place where an older woman introduced herself tentatively.

"Do you understand how Data was your brother?" again that word, _brother_, "The link, I know, is hard to understand. You remember Noonien Soong?"

"Yes, I remember Dr Soong. Data's memory says that he is my _father. _We are a _family_?"

"You were, yes. I, in that same peculiar way, am your mother. I worked with Noonien to build you, Lor and Data. Now only you survive."

"But you are old. Your hair is grey, you cannot be my _mother_. My _mother_ had black hair." He stumbled over the unfamiliar word as he had brother, father and family before. She gasped.

"You remember me?"

"I have a… recollection. I do not know if it is mine or Data's. Why do you have grey hair?" she laughed at the simplicity and innocence of the question, said in a way so similar to Data that the ache she had felt at seeing him grew.

The older woman stayed with him in that place whilst the dark friend of Data's worked on him more. Things became easier to understand as his positronic matrix was improved. He made it easier for B4 to understand things, the concept of mother, father and brother, of family, made sense, albeit slowly, and not in conjunction to his personal situation. His new companion, the word _friend_ still an unfamiliar idea for him to adopt, told him that it would take time, but that this enthusiastic-ness he was now showing would help a great deal.

Then came the day that it all changed. He was awakened to a great deal of something that he couldn't understand, there was elation, and sadness. The dark one explained that they were testing how the emotion chip would work with him, and encouraged him to explain what he felt. With this new addition in his matrix, B4 had an overwhelming comprehension of all those things that he previously had not been able to understand. He knew how his mother felt towards him, _love_ and he felt _sadness_ at the _loss_ of his, his brother Data. It all made sense.

B4 decided to use the chip only sparingly, the others were worried it would overload his circuits, and whilst he did not wish to die, he wanted to know more. Geordi, Data's friend, _his _friend, had left, assigned somewhere new, and Juliana Tainer his _mother_ had left as well. As B4 had commented when he first met her, she was old, and she wanted to return to her husband and their home. B4 was slowly realising that he was neither B4 nor Data. He was a mix of the two, due to the lack of his own personal memories, and the addition of Data's. His learning was all his own, but more and more those around him were noticing that he was more like Data in his personality. B4 liked this, a simple liking, but a liking of the mix, of the fact that he reminded his friends of their friend for more than the fact that they were identical. He slowly came to the conclusion that he didn't like his name, and tentatively asked if they would refer to him as Data.

"For although I am in most technical respects B4, in my memories I am Data. I would like to be known as Data, series 1.5." He explained to 'The Bald One' as he still thought of Captain Picard.

"That, that sounds like a fine idea B4, I mean Data. I am glad that you have found a sense of who you are, and will recommend that you be reinstated to Star Fleet." The Bald One smiled at him, his head shining slightly in the light of his office.

"I also wanted to wish you… good luck, Captain. I have been informed that you have accepted a place as Admiral of Star Fleet Academy. Break a leg, sir." Picard nodded.

"My thanks Data, good luck to you also. Picard out."


End file.
